Just When I Thought It Couldn't Get Any Worse
by AnabellaHunter13
Summary: Ellie didn't have much to lose in the first place. Her parents had been gone for a while now. But leaving the city she grew up in for Atlanta seemed like trouble from the moment they left Boston city limits. It was bad enough that Carl's dad was in a coma, now the dead were walking and everything he knew was going down in flames. Cowritten with kornerbrandon.
1. Prologue Part 1

**A/N: Hey guys! I joined forces with kornerbrandon and together we bring you this story! He's a cool dude and y'all should definitely check out his other fanfics. I'm really excited to finally put out this story, I hope y'all enjoy it.**

Reruns of the 90's show Friends played in the background as Riley lamented to me the sorrows of her chemistry class.

"I'm telling you Ellie, Mrs. Hammond has it out for my _head_ ," she waved her hands emphatically, "I actually studied for the test this time. And she still flunked me! It's like she doesn't want me to go to the district track meet!" Riley flopped further into the couch dramatically. My best friend had a tendency to be the slightest bit overdramatic at times.

I look past the couch into the kitchen and I see Marlene packing cans of corn and peas into one of the backpacks I used for school a couple years ago. The expression she wears is sour with worry. The tense movements of her body are a bad sign that I've learned over the years. My mom and Marlene had been friends since they were in high school. Marlene became my legal guardian on my 7th birthday after what I call "The Series of Unfortunate Events", which makes it a lot easier to talk about than the alternative.

I notice Marlene's got a radio on the counter, every now and then her head cocks as if to hear the radio better. Just then the TV cuts from Chandler and Joey arguing to a black screen on filled by these white words:

" _The following message is transmitted at the request of the United States Government and Center for Disease Control:_

 _An unknown virus has been released within the continental United States. Those infected with the unknown virus have exhibited the following symptoms: Loss of coordination, extreme aggression, and pale skin. All residents are encouraged to remain in their homes until further notice"_

My stomach drops like a rock, "Marlene?!" I call over the deafening siren like blare from the TV. Riley looks at me, eyes scared and wide. Her chemistry grade is now forgotten. We both stand up and turn to Marlene for what to do.

"Girls, grab only what you need, we're leaving in two minutes." Marlene slings the backpack over her shoulders.

Riley looks at Marlene in disbelief, she points at the TV screen that's still screaming the warning tone, "They just said to stay in our homes."

Marlene shakes her head, "We're leaving _come on_. We don't have the time for this."

I don't argue with her, I grab Riley by the wrist and tug her toward my room. We wear about the same size clothes, it'll have to do.

"What about my parents?" Riley asks as I pull her down the hallway.

I bite my lip, not sure what to make of the whole situation. I just know one thing. If Marlene says we need to go, then we need to go. I unzip my backpack and turn it over. Pencils, pens, textbooks, and old assignments clatter noisily to the floor. I grab a duffel bag from the bottom of the closet and toss it to Riley.

"Grab some clothes and pack 'em." the thought crosses my mind long enough for me to say something, "Go in my bathroom, grab my toothbrush and the one you use. Toothpaste too. Oh, and grab the tampons. From the sound of it, we're gonna be gone for a while."

My heart thumps hard against my chest as I scan my room. What can't I part with? The stack of comic books on my nightstand catches my eye. I push them into my backpack and pack a diverse array for clothes. I don't know where we're going or how long we'll be gone. So I throw my jacket in there along with some jeans, shorts, long sleeve shirt, and a tank top. I throw in some underwear and socks for good measure. Riley runs back into the room and I start digging out clothes for her too. I scan the room I've called my own for the past 6 years. I turn to leave when the thought hits me, I run to my desk and yank open the left top drawer. I pull out an envelope and stuff it in my backpack. There that's everything. Other than that, there's really nothing I'm overly attached to. That makes me a little sad, but there's no time to feel sorry for myself.

I choke past the weight on my chest and grab Riley's hand, "Come on, let's go."

Marlene is standing at the door to the apartment, looking impatient, "Come on girls, we can't waste time." She opens the door and waves us out. I pull Riley out the door. Marlene follows behind us, "Get to the car, we've got to get out of the city."

3 flights of stairs later, Marlene is hitting unlock on her Honda Civic. I shove Riley in the back with me and we're moving about half a second after I slam the door shut. I hardly have time throw on my seatbelt before we slam to a stop. Traffic. Apparently we weren't the only ones with the bright idea to get the hell out of dodge. Sirens whine and blare in the distance. The sun's going down in south Boston. I stare out my window as people are running down the street. I'm not sure if they're running to something or running from something. The unsureness of it all makes my stomach uneasy.

I've never seen Riley look as frightened as she does now. Her dark skin is pale by its normal comparison. Her eyes are almost glassy and she sits perfectly still as Marlene tries to navigate her way through traffic. Riley never sits still.

"Are you doing ok, Ri?" I look over at Riley, my hand rests on top of hers, trying to comfort her.

She grabs my hand and interlaces our fingers, squeezing hard, "What about my parents?"

Marlene looks in the rearview mirror at Riley, "We'll meet up with them if we can. But right now, I'm not letting you out of my sight."

We turn the corner, and there's a building on fire and people running, trying to get past the cars. Emerging from the fire are people who shuffle as they walk. Staggering towards the running masses. Their posture is limp and the way they thrash their bodies forward to propel their movement is unsettling.

"Marlene… what's wrong with those people? Are they sick?" I ask quietly, nervous to know the truth, already suspecting the worst.

Marlene searches for the right words for a minute, "To be honest with you Elle, I'm really not sure. But _that_ is what they were warning us about on the TV. Girls, you better scoot away from the windows, I'm not sure what these things can do."

 _Things_. I frown. Not people, _things_.

One gets closer and the light of the fire reflects from their- its disfigured, gray face. Riley squeezes my hand tighter.

"What the hell is that?" She hisses into my ear. I shake my head. The person- thing bares its teeth and I'm revolted to realize the red that stains their- its maw is blood. I realize that the thing continues to stumble forward despite the gaping pit that should be the person's abdomen. Intestines leak and hang down from the hole. I clench my teeth together to fight off vomit.

I hear gunfire ahead of us, there's a line of policemen in riot gear, firing at anything that moves. Guts hanging out or not. Riley releases my hand and leans forward over the center console. She squints hard, trying to focus on something past the windshield.

"Is that-" she cuts off suddenly, "It can't be." We inch closer in the standstill traffic. I try to peek at what Riley is looking at between Marlene and Riley's shoulders. I see it, them to be more accurate. Riley's parents. Riley tumbles forward into the front passenger seat. She starts to roll the window down, but Marlene grabs her other arm and stops her.

"Don't you dare unroll that window. Do you want to invite those things in here?" Marlene warns. For good measure, I hear the click of child lock.

"Those are my parents!" Riley practically yells. Fear and anger mix in her voice in a gut-wrenching cocktail.

The gunfire continues, the police trying to mow down the threat. It's all too predictable. The bullets hit Riley's parents' bodies and the sound of Riley's screams fill the car. I watch as their bodies seem to dance as each bullet hits a different part of their bodies, sending a jolt of energy in each spot. The few seconds it takes for their bodies to hit the ground lasts an eternity. Riley continues to yell and her screams become muddy with tears as they turn to sobs. Marlene tries to comfort her but soon becomes distracted by the traffic situation.

We turn right and pass her parents' bodies, I hear the click of the lock as Riley starts to grapple the door handle.

"They're gone Riley," Marlene reminds her. Her tone is sharp, but only because of the direness of the situation.

"My parents," She mumbles through sobs, "my parents."

We get out of town and head south. Marlene tells Riley to get in the back seat after a while. It's easier to try and comfort her from back here. Riley rests her head on my shoulder and I rub my hand against her back in a comforting rhythm. Her shuddering breaths subside after a while and she falls asleep.

"Where are we going?" I can't help but ask Marlene. It's pitch black out now.

"Atlanta. I have an old friend who works for the military there. The army has set up a safe zone for civilians like us."

I've never been to Georgia before. I just have to think of it like an adventure, that's all.

"It's gonna be a long drive, you might as well get some sleep while you can. I'll wake you up if things get too exciting out there." Marlene tells me. But the truth is, I don't think I can sleep. The image of that thing walking around with its guts hanging out and blood dripping from its jaw is burned into my mind. Every time I close my eyes I see Riley's parents collapsing to the ground, their bodies spattered with bullets. Their lives were senseless casualties trying to bring down those things.

I stare out the window, not really looking at anything in particular. Honestly I'm trying to understand the weight of it all.

"Marlene, what's happening? Like the alert, and the cops, and… and those things? Why are we going to a safe zone?" I ask finally.

Marlene is quiet for so long I begin to wonder if she heard me, "For about a week now, there have been cases popping up all over the United States of a dangerous virus. The CDC has been trying to find a cure for it while the cases were still anomalies. One person in one state, a couple in another, that kind of thing. It's got all kinds of government officials baffled. They just keep growing in numbers. Boston was one of the first cities to become infected. That's why I couldn't let us stay there. Before the alert went out, I was planning to sneak us out of the city by night. I was hoping to get to Atlanta before things really blew up and we could just ride it out with Ethan. Clearly, plans have changed. When he, Ethan, first told me about it he said it wouldn't last more than a few weeks. He said the CDC would figure out a cure really quick. For some reason it feels like it won't be that short-lived…" she trails off.

I bite my tongue. Marlene normally has a good intuition, one that I trust, "Are we ever going home?"

"No. I don't think we can." Marlene says quietly.

I grit my teeth, I figured as much, "I hated the weather in Boston anyway." I joke. Marlene exhales sharply in a silent laugh, but doesn't say anything. I go back to staring out the window. There are some cars on this road, but not enough to cause traffic and we move quickly. I don't know how long Marlene can or will drive, but she doesn't seem like she'll be stopping anytime soon.

The clock on the dash reads 2:17 am when Marlene pulls into a gas station.

"Wake up Riley, I want you two to run in and do some shopping while I fill up." Marlene instructs me. I shake Riley by the shoulder and tell her that we have to get out. Marlene pulls up next to a gas pump and then digs around in her purse and retrieves her wallet. She hands me her credit card.

My eyes widen at the piece of plastic, "What do you want us to do? Buy out the place?"

"Get as many water bottles as they have, and any kind of food with a lot of preservatives. Beef jerky especially. And if you see anything that looks like we'll need it, buy it." Marlene ignores my snarky humor, then she digs through her bag some more, "You should take this. Keep it on you, you'll never know when it'll come in handy. It was your father's." Marlene hands me a switchblade. I take it from her and push it into the back pocket of my jeans. I open the car door and Riley scoots out after me.

She's quiet and withdrawn, two things I've never known Riley to be. I nudge her with my elbow, "Come on, we're about to make this guy's graveyard shift a lot more interesting."

We pull open the door to the gas station and a bell rings. A guy leans against his register, looking at his phone. His eyes dart up when we walk in and his arm disappears under the register. I gulp, and my hand goes to my back pocket. Ok, maybe he's already had some excitement tonight.

"We're just here to buy water and stuff man," I tell him, lifting my other hand up innocently. The cashier eyes us suspiciously, but slowly raises his arm back to counter level.

"Water's on the back wall. Some guys earlier made a pretty thorough run through, not sure how much is left." he says indifferently. We walk through the aisles to the back wall. The cashier was right, most of the energy drinks and sodas are gone, as are a chunk of the water bottles. Luckily there are several big ones, along with a lot of medium sized and small ones. Riley and I grab as many as we can carry and then we bring them up to the register. I slap down the credit card, "Start us a tab." We empty our arms and go back to the fridges and grab more water. We literally buy the guy out of water bottles and then Riley and go through and grab all of the beef jerky. I also see a couple first aid kits, a box of matches, a couple flashlights and add those to our stack of groceries. I grab a pack of Oreos because fuck it, why not?

We check out and lug the several bags of groceries back to Marlene's car. She's already gassed up and in the car ready to go.

Marlene puts the car into drive, "Good job girls, ration everything into each of our bags. We need to be ready to run at a moment's notice."

We turn on the light in the car and we sort through the supplies. Soon our bags are loaded with enough supplies to keep us going for a while. Riley hasn't said a word this whole time. Her movements are stiff and reluctant, like she's having to force herself to move.

Once we're done and the light's back off, Riley settles against me once more for another nap. This time though, my body feels compelled to sleep. I lean against my window and close my eyes, pushing the horrifying images from my mind. I finally fall into an uneasy sleep.

When I wake up it's broad daylight. I catch a glimpse of Marlene in her rearview mirror and she looks exhausted as her eyes stare blankly ahead at the road.

I sit up and find Riley still crashed against me, "Where are we?" I rub my eyes and then pop my neck.

"About an hour north of Atlanta," Marlene informs me.

"Has she been asleep this whole time?" I nod towards Riley.

Marlene shakes her head, "She woke up a couple hours ago, realized we were in the car, and that this wasn't a dream. She asked me if her parents were dead, poor kid. I guess it's easier to sleep through the grief. If I'm being honest, I'm convinced that she thinks if she goes to sleep enough, one of these times when she wakes up this will all have been some twisted nightmare."

I look over at my best friend, this whole thing has screwed her up bad. I'm really not sure why I'm handling this whole mess better than her, maybe it's because my parents are already dead.

The last hour to Atlanta drags. I end up digging out one of my Savage Starlight comic books out and read it to distract myself. Finally I look up and we're surrounded by skyscrapers and what do you know we're stuck in traffic again. I hold back an annoyed sigh, and limit myself to an exaggerated eye roll. Finally I see what looks like a fence with barbed wire lining the top ahead of me. The stop and go motion of what must be a checkpoint is beginning to make me slightly nauseated.

Finally it's our turn. I shake Riley awake, she wakes with a start, but doesn't say anything. Marlene unrolls her window, "Are you transporting any infected?" the guard asks

Marlene shakes her head, "No. I'm with Ethan."

The guard squints, "Can I see some ID please?"

Marlene digs through her bag until she pulls out a loose identification card. Something in my gut twists. Marlene always keeps her driver's license in her wallet.

"You're a resident of the state of Georgia, Mrs. …Arnold?" the guard glances back at me and Riley, "Are those yours and Lt. Arnold's children?"

"Yes we are. One of them is my adoptive daughter and the other is her friend." Marlene explains.

The guard doesn't seem convinced, "Do you have papers for them as well?"

"We left our home in a rush I'm afraid." Marlene shakes her head.

The guard studies Marlene, his eyes occasionally flicking over to Riley and I. He eventually grabs his walkie talkie, "Lt. Arnold, this is Sgt. McKinley. Your wife and family are at the gate." The response is muffled, but the guard seems to get the gist of it, "Roger that. Sorry to bother you, sir." He snaps the walkie back onto his belt, "My apologies Mrs. Arnold, you and your family stay safe now. Welcome to the safe zone."

And just like that, we're in. Marlene rolls up her window and we drive past the fences.

"Is there something you forgot to tell me?" I'm very confused. Marlene isn't married. She can't be. I would have known about this.

"It was the easiest way to get in." Marlene replies passively, like she didn't just lie to the military. Another officer is pointing for us to park in an indicated area. We do as he instructs and we get our bags from the car. Marlene follows the officer and we follow Marlene. He leads us to a row of tents, from one of which, another officer walks from.

"Ethan!" Marlene smiles and the officer, Ethan, hugs Marlene and kisses her cheek.

"I'm glad you made the drive down safely," Ethan then looks over at the younger officer, "Private, you're dismissed. Carry on with your duties. I'll take it from here."

The man, hardly one at that, nods. He looks like he just recently got out of high school. He walks off. And Ethan releases Marlene.

Ethan hitches his thumb over his shoulder, "If y'all want to put your bags in the tent, that's where y'all will be staying and then you're free to walk around the housing area. All the other officer's families are in this area," His tone indicates that we're to maintain the idea that we're his family. I look at Marlene and she gives me a stern look, like this isn't the time to smart off to him. Riley and I nod compliantly. For whatever reason, I decide to keep my backpack on. I feel safer knowing that most of my Savage Starlight collection is with me.

As it turns out, that was the best choice I made all day.

I was standing beside Marlene who was talking to some officer's wife when I heard screams further down the street of the housing area.

"The perimeter's been breached!" shouts one of the officers who sprints from his tent. People are running now. They're running from the direction the screams came from. They're running to find their family members. It's like watching chickens with their heads cut off. The woman who Marlene was formerly talking to runs off. Her parting words are "My son!"

Marlene turns to me, "Go find Riley."

My heart slams against my chest, "What about you?"

"I'll find you. I promise, but I've got to find Ethan. He's our best shot anywhere. I can't lose him."

I nod quickly and I join the running masses. I make my way back to our tent. Several people smack into me, tossing me back and forth like a pinball.

I hear more screams, but the bustle of all the action makes it impossible to tell where the screaming came from. People are shouting names, calling for their loved ones. I don't even bother, Riley will never hear me above the roar of the crowd, and I wouldn't be able to hear her either. I use my smaller size to my advantage, wiggling in spaces between two bodies that most couldn't fit through. A foot kicks my ankle and I trip, my palms scrape against the concrete. I force myself to get up quickly, out of fear of being trampled. 

I get back to my feet and I hear gunshots. Though I can't see, I know that my life just got in a lot more danger. Thoughts of Boston come to mind. I have to find Riley. I get back to our tent and Riley is clutching her backpack sitting in the back corner. I grab her hand and pull her up.

"Ellie you came back!" she drops the bag and envelopes me in a hug.

"Riley, we've got to go. Like now." I grab her bag and practically shove it back into her arms. I grab her by the wrist, "Now we've got to find Marlene. Come on!"

We run from the tent and I have no idea where to go. I run back towards where I came from, scanning faces as they pass.

"Marlene!" Riley shouts

"Marlene!" I join her because two voices are louder than one. We yell until our voices get hoarse. We make it back to where I saw Marlene last and there isn't a sign of her anywhere. Not that I expected this much. I knew she was looking for Ethan. The gunshots, which have been on and off are getting closer. I look behind me, and I see them. A lot of them to be exact. Those things. I can tell by the way they stumble about and the dead look in their eyes. They're headed towards us. I start running in the opposite direction, pulling Riley with me.

Ahead of us I see the figures of officers.

"Help!" I scream, praying they can hear me.

It takes a moment for the pieces to connect. I hear the crack of the bullet. I feel the weight tugging in my hand. But it doesn't occur to me until I turn and see a hole between Riley's eyes. Her body hits the ground and I release her. Fight or flight is kicking in and I don't stand a chance between the undead and bullets. I run from the guns and I run from those things. I run down the nearest alley. I run smack into two guys with guns of their own. One is probably in his mid-forties, with salt and pepper hair, a pistol, and a scowl. The other guy is a little shorter with curly brown hair, a shotgun, and he wears a t-shirt that says "King County Sheriff Department". I'm sure that I've managed to run in the wrong direction.

I back up and pull the switchblade from my back pocket, "Don't shoot. Please. I need to find my… mom." Not exactly the truth, but close enough for strangers.

The taller guy speaks, "It's ok, kid. We're not gonna shoot you. But we can't stay here. It's not safe."

He puts his arm around my shoulder to shield me and the guy with the curly hair leads the way.

We get far enough away that the gunshots are a little more than echoes in the distance and we slow to somewhere between a jog and a fast walk. "Name's Joel by the way." He nods towards Curly, "That's Shane. We've got a bigger group, even have a couple kids your age, you'll be safe with us."

Every time I think past putting one foot in front of another my head starts spinning. It all happened so fast. I can't think straight. One question pounds repeatedly in my head, "Where's Marlene?" Is she alive? Part of me says she has to be. She has to take care of me. That's what she signed the guardianship papers to do. She can't die too. She just can't. But the part of me that keeps seeing a constant repeat of Riley's body hitting the ground tells me Marlene is dead. Everyone I've ever known or loved is dead. And now I'm stuck with these strangers who I'm not sure if I can trust. The military said they would keep us safe. The goddamn military. And if they can't keep us safe, then who can? Certainly not a couple yahoos I met in an alley, right? We turn down another street and I see several cars, including an ancient RV. There are several people, all looking at us. I look back, but all I see are dead bodies in the making. I tell myself it's a good idea not to get attached now. If the current pattern continues, we'll all be dead in a week tops.

"Hey! We're back!" shouts Shane. Shane points me in the direction of two kids sitting beside the road. A girl and a boy. The girl clutches a doll and the boy is studying me. I avoid eye contact with both of them. I sit down a couple feet away and find myself staring blankly at my sneakers.

The girl pipes up and introduces herself. Her name's Sophia, she seems like a nice girl. She tells me the boy's name is Carl.

She asks for my name.

"Ellie." I tell her, not looking up from my shoes.

They leave me alone after that.

Good. It's better that way.

They just don't know it yet.


	2. Prologue Part 2

**Hi guys! kornerbrandon here with the second part of the prologue. I'm really excited about this story; AnabellaHunter13 will vouch for that, considering I have been planning this for the better part of 6 months. It's my first story for both franchises, so I am a little nervous. That said, I do have an ongoing story for Game of Thrones, so feel free to pop over and check it out.**

 **We have altered the backstory for the original group slightly though. Free cookie if you can spot it.**

 **Anyway, let's get started!**

I'm sitting in the back of Shane's jeep, reading one of my comics, one of the few I'd managed to save when all this happened. Just a few weeks ago I was complaining about school or getting psyched about the new Iron Man movie. Now, the dead were literally _walking_.

"Carl, over here!" Someone says. I look up from my comic to find Sophia gesturing for me to follow her. I put down the comic and walk over to her.

"What is it, Sophia?" I ask.

"Two guys are getting into a fight just down there" She says, pointing to a small crowd gathering down the road a bit. "Wanna watch?" She asks.

"Do I!" I respond. Yes, it was a bit stupid, but hey, I am only 13 and with not being able to play Halo anymore, I'm desperate for any sort of excitement. I follow Sophia as we weave our way to the front of the crowd to see two men fighting over what looks like a . . . watch?

"That watch was my daughter's, bastard!" Shouts the taller one.

"Finder's keepers, man. Now piss off." The other responds. The taller guy punches him in the face, causing him to stumble backwards slightly. The shorter guy recovers and tackles the taller guy to the ground, and begins punching him. The taller guy throws him off and goes to punch him again, but stops when the shorter guy pulls out a gun.

"Alright, you bastard. Watch is mine." Says the shorter guy. The taller guy shakes his head and is about to get shot when Shane jumps in, disarming the shorter guy and sending him scampering. I can vaguely hear Shane and the taller man talking as the crowd disperses.

"Thanks for that, man." Says the guy.

"No problem, man. What's your name?" Shane asks.

"Joel Miller. I'm from Texas. You?" The man says.

"Shane Walsh, King County, right here in Georgia. You're a fair way from home." Shane responds. He's right, this . . . Joel is a long way from Texas.

"I know. I got caught up in the evacuation from Austin. Nearly killed about three times. Heard Atlanta was some sort of safe zone."

"Yeah, we did too. We're not that far out. Only a few miles at most." Shane says. "Hey man, you all alone?" He asks. Joel's face drops.

"Yeah. Have been for a while," he answers, "Why?" He asks.

"Well I figure you'd be able to sleep a little easier with someone watchin' your back. Plus, I know I'd sleep easier knowin' that I'm in the company of a guy who can knock a couple of heads together." Shane says. "I know the others in our group would too."

As Shane says that, I realise I have no idea who is in our group. Was it just me, mom and Shane? Dad, when he finds us? Sophia and her mom and dad? We met a while back and we've stuck together ever since, but are they in our group. _Of course they are, stop thinking that._

Shane holds out his hand, offering a handshake to Joel, who accepts. One more person in our group. Sophia and I, not wanting to get spotted, walk back to our mothers. They seem to be chatting about something girly (blech) while Sophia's dad is sitting in the front of their jeep. I don't want to sound mean, but her dad's a bit of a deadbeat. I've heard mom and Shane refer to him in other words, but I'm not allowed to use those words.

"Carl!" Says Sophia, snapping her fingers in front of my face. "Did you hear me, Carl?" She asks, unimpressed.

"Huh, what?" I respond. _Smooth, Carl, smooth._

"I asked do you want to play 20 Questions?" She asks. My mother taught me when I was a kid how to play it.

"Yeah sure, why not?" I respond, and so our game begins. After about five minutes I find myself staring into her eyes. We pass the time with our game until Shane finds us.

"Alright you two. Apparently the jam's been cleared. We'll be getting into the city soon. You two stay close." He says.

"We will, Shane." I respond. I climb into the back of Shane's jeep while mom and Shane climb into the front. Sophia gives a friendly wave from her parents' car up ahead. I wave back, feeling strangely comforted by it. Shane turns to me and my mom.

"Now, I met this guy a few minutes ago; Joel. Says he's on his own. He's going to be joining us." Shane says.

"Are you sure we can trust him?" Mom asks.

"I'm certain we can. He can knock a few heads together if needs to, but I don't think he'll kill us in our sleep, if that's what you mean." Shane responds. Mom seems satisfied by the answer. We start moving up the highway. We're about a half hour from the city.

I"ve never been to Atlanta in my life. I know, kid from Georgia who's never even been to his state capital, it's weird, but hey, I am only 13. I pull out my Avengers comic and go back to reading it. I become so engrossed in it, that I'm actually surprised when we get to the city. I stuff the comic in my backpack as Shane gets out of the car. As mom and I get out of the car too, we're shocked by what we see.

There's nothing left. People are scampering right and left, trying to get off the street. A few are carrying guns, and it looks like the soldiers mom told me would be here are gone.

"Army must've been overrun." Says Joel, walking up behind us.

"Yeah. We still need to find supplies though. Might as well have look in one of these broken things." Shane responds, gesturing to the abandoned cars. Sophia and her parents arrive shortly after, and Shane explains the situation to them. Mom, Sophia's mom and dad, Sophia and I stay at the cars. Sophia and I occupy ourselves by breaking out the card set she has and playing a game of snap.

Our game is suddenly interrupted by the sound of gunfire. A couple of them I know come from Shane's shotgun, the others are quieter, and sound like they're from a smaller gun. Was it Joel? I don't know. I don't even know if Joel has a gun to begin with. Mom and Carol wince at the sound of the gunshots, while Sophia goes to cover her ears. It carries on for a while, but it sounds like things are quietening down again.

Suddenly, a large group of those things (I heard the adults call them Walkers) starts heading towards us. Mom and Sophia's mom begin herding us into a small alleyway, while Sophia's dad heads to the other side of the street. I hug my mom tightly, afraid of what might happen if I let go.

I hear the sound of gunshots, but they're closer this time. A couple of them sound like they're from bigger gun, while the others are from a smaller gun.

"You alright back there?!" Asks one of them. Mom is the first out of the alleyway.

"Yeah, we're okay!" She shouts. I peek around the corner to see an RV of some sort and an old man standing with a smoking rifle and a woman with a pistol. I hope they're friendly.

They make their way over to us. I want to go inside the RV; I've never been inside one before, but mom would probably lose it if I went somewhere without her saying I could. As the adults talked with each other, I sit with Sophia on the side of the road. She's still clutching her doll tightly; she's been doing that every time we have a close encounter with those things. I gently touch her shoulder to reassure her, and she smiles at me.

"Hey! We're back!" Calls Shane. Sophia and I turn to look and see him and Joel running towards us with . . . a girl? Yeah that's definitely a girl. She doesn't look scared though, more . . . depressed? I don't know, I'm not one of those watchamacallits, psychiatrists? I'm not sure. Shane tells the girl to go over to me and Sophia. She walks over to us and and sits down while Shane and Joel go to talk with the other adults.

"Hi. I'm Sophia. This is Carl. What's your name?" Sophia asks.

"Ellie." She says simply. I look at Sophia, and we both get the feeling that this Ellie doesn't really want to be bothered. Shane calls the three of us over.

"Alright, I think it's pretty obvious that we can't stay here. Army's already been overrun, so there's no safety. Now there's a quarry about forty miles out. We can set up there." He explains.

"But what about dad?" I ask. Sophia looks at me worriedly, while Ellie looks confused.

"Dad'll find us, honey." Says mom. I believe her. Dad _will_ find us, no matter what.

"I'll take the girl in my car." Says Joel. Ellie still looks a little depressed as she's bundled into Joel's car. As I'm heading over to Shane's car, Sophia calls out my name. She runs over towards me and hugs me. Awkwardly, I hug her back.

"I'll see you at the quarry, Carl." She says.

"I'll see you there as well." I respond as I climb into Shane's car. Our little column begins to race away from the city, eager to get away from those things. I'll tell you, killing undead monsters is fun on Call of Duty, but it's a different story in real life.

I hear plane engines flying overhead. I know mom and Shane hear it too, because they look out their windows too. I try to get to the side window in the back, but I can't see anything.

I turn around to look out the back window of the car. All I see is fire. Atlanta burning.

 **Well that about wraps up the prologue! Stay tuned for the next few chapters!**


	3. Chapter 1

It takes me a couple weeks, but I begin to settle into life in the quarry. After a week passed and no one died, I slowly began to say more than what was absolutely, completely necessary. After two weeks passed, I kind of made a friend. That Carl kid is pretty cool as it turns out. His taste in comic books is subpar, but he is a comic book geek nonetheless. Once my mind could see him more than a corpse waiting to happen, it was easier to actually make conversation. Halfway through my third week here, I smiled for the first time since the world fell to shit.

The first week was the hardest week of my entire life. I haven't grieved like that since my father passed, I had almost forgotten how much grieving completely sucks. Waking up every morning, each day realizing that I couldn't tell Riley about the crazy dream I had. Or that Marlene isn't here to lecture me about my less than perfect math grade. Who needs quadratic equations when dead people are stumbling around eating the living?

Lori thought we needed them though. Every damn day, she and Carol would corral us kids to a table and we'd pull out some algebra workbooks and solve word problems. It's not like we have bigger fish to fry or anything.

Today, I sit next to Carl trying to solve equation 17, grumbling under my breath. "This is fucking bullshit," I madly erase what little work I have done, upon the realization that I was doing it wrong.

Sophia, who's on the other side of Carl, looks past him and at me with wide eyes. My initial impression of Sophia has pretty much stayed consistent, she's a very nice girl. Since I began talking again, my sailor-like talk tends to throw her off. She always ends up gawking at me with those big hazel-green eyes.

I look down awkwardly, smacking my lips together. I suck them against my teeth and sigh. Sometimes words just come out of my mouth, it's not like I do it on purpose. It's just habit. The first time it happened Sophia asked me if my mom let me talk like that and I got real quiet. To be accurate I stopped talking for about 3 days. After that, no one mentioned my family or my past period. It's easier not to think about all I've lost when no one brings it up. For a while it would become so consuming that I wouldn't hear people when they'd say something to me. I've gotten much better about it, but every now and then it hits me and I feel like I'm drowning again.

"I wish I could talk like that," Carl says with a mischievous smirk.

I look up from my work and shrug, "Gets you in more trouble than it's worth, pal."

"Still, this stuff is so dumb. When am I going to need to figure out where the equation intercepts with the x axis on a graph? How is that useful to the real world?" he complains. This is about the fifth complaint I've heard in the past half hour from him.

I bite my lip because he's right, and Lori already lectured me once when I asked that question. I don't want to hear that speech again, so I change my angle to prevent some major soap-box style spiel from his mother. "Carl, I swear, if you don't shut up, I'm gonna use my knife and shred your Avengers comic books."

His brow creases almost comically and he frowns at me, "You wouldn't dare. I only have 3!"

I give him a look that says "try me". He glares back at me for a moment, but I match him. Death stare for death stare. A devilish smirk appears on my face, amused by my threat. Not to mention how seriously he's taking this situation. The longer he glares, the more bored my expression appears, like I could do this all day.

"Carl!" Lori walks back over to us, "Are you done with your work?"

He looks away from me and at his mom. I win.

"No," he casts me a side glance, "Ellie was distracting me."

I snort, "Oh please, you started it."

Lori rolls her eyes, "Both of you, get back to work. The sooner you finish your worksheet the sooner you can help with chores around here." Carl and I groan in synchronized disgust. She walks off to help Carol with some laundry.

Carl turns to Sophia, who just looked up from her work, "Maybe you'd be done by now if you didn't complain so much," she says with a shy smile.

Carl gives her a displeased look and sighs, but it melts into a smile and he holds her gaze for a second too long. The two end up blushing before going back to their work. I roll my eyes and resign myself to struggling with the problem in front of me.

Sophia and Carl don't have a thing going on- that I'm aware of- but it's clear there's some chemistry there. It's like being a permanent third wheel with these two. It's not my fault that I too am a 13 year old child and therefore end up being corralled with the other 13 year old children.

I fumble through the next 13 problems, bullshitting most of my work. I know the answers are probably wrong, but I can't understand the concept for the life of me. Lori checks our work, for completion thank God, and dismisses us from our schoolwork for the day. Lucky us, we get to help fold laundry.

Our camp consists of around 35 people, a lot of them tend to keep to themselves. There are a couple of families with children, but they're younger than we are and their parents keep them close. The work done around camp and to sustain our general survival is pretty much split between the men and the women. The women in general do more domestic style tasks, while the men typically either protect camp or go scavenging for supplies. Today though, Glenn, Merle, Andrea, Jacqui and T-Dog are the ones who leave for Atlanta. They're going to scavenge what remains in the city after the bombing. I know this because I've begged Joel for two days to let me go with the group. Out of all the adults, I trust him the most. And every time he's turned me down. Part of me wonders if Marlene survived and is still in the city. I guess that's probably why I want to go so badly. The rest of me, though, knows that she's probably dead. Or worse. She's one of those things. Around here, I hear the adults call those things "walkers". I refuse to even imagine the thought of Marlene as a walker.

I'm folding a shirt that I'm pretty sure belongs to Sophia, when I hear a crackling sound. We keep a radio on this tree stump. It's been silent since we got here. But today it crackles to life, and I'm not the only one to hear it. Andrea's sister, Amy, drops the pile of kindling she was carrying and races to pick up the CB radio. Soon, it attracts the attention of the rest of camp. People watch as Amy tries to talk to the voice that comes through loud and clear. It asks for our response if we can hear it. Amy tries, but the message must not get through. Shane runs over and takes the radio from Amy.

"This is Officer Shane Walsh broadcasting to person unknown. Please respond." he says into the radio.

Silence crackles from the other side and we all sit on our toes, hoping for a response. Nothing.

"He's gone." Shane sets the radio mic down.

We know that there's more than just us now. I mean, there had to be. Considering the 6.8 billion people that inhabited the Earth when this all went down. There's no way it was narrowed down to 35 so quickly. Right?

But that poor guy, he told us he was headed into Atlanta. He must not know Atlanta is dead.

Lori and Shane begin discussing the very thing I was thinking about. Lori gives Shane a look and reminds him about her idea to put up signs on the highway warding people away from the city.

Carl turns away from the argument and begins to walk off. From what I've picked up, Carl's dad was in the hospital whenever the outbreak happened.

"Are you ok, man?" I walk over to him.

He nods, "Yeah, it's a good thing that we know there are other survivors. It gives me faith that my dad is among those survivors," I cast him an unsure look, "he's coming back you know. He's going to find my mom and I, and we'll be a whole family again." His eyes hold mine firmly. His faith is so strong that it makes me queasy.

"Carl," I say quietly, "It's been like two and a half weeks, you may need to consider that your dad may not be coming back." I choose my words carefully. I don't want him to be delusional. The odds of his dad still being alive are practically nonexistent. Just like the odds of Marlene still being alive in Atlanta. Nonexistent. I get where he's coming from though. The image of our loved ones being alive, searching for us, is much more comforting than the alternative. The difference is that I've accepted the fact that Marlene probably isn't out there. As for Carl….

"What the heck is your problem? Are you stupid? Of course he's coming back! My dad is a good man, he wouldn't just abandon my mom and I!" The sharp turn-around of his emotions stuns me. I take a small step back and bite my lip. I thought Carl and I were on good terms now, I thought we were friends. The anger in his eyes doesn't fade and his fists remain clenched at his sides.

I turn sharply and walk away, "No need to be so rude," I grumble under my breath. I walk to the small tent where I sleep at night and grab a comic from my backpack. I sit on my sleeping bag and begin to read some Savage Starlight.

A while later there's a slapping sound on the outside of the tent. I look up and see the outline of Carl. I lean over and push open the flap.

I squint up at him, "What do you want?"

Carl kicks at a weed beside his foot, staring at the ground. He clears his throat, "I just wanted to say I was sorry about earlier." His eyes meet mine, and I can see the honesty in them.

My brow furrows and I cross my arms, "Oh really now?" I cock my head at him, indicating I want him to continue.

He nods, "I shouldn't have called you stupid. You're not."

"Mhm," I acknowledge him indifferently, I look away from him with an expression that borders along boredom, "Well I don't forgive you."

I sneak a tiny look at him for his reaction, the slump of shoulders is visible, the shine in his earnest eyes disintegrates. I fight off a chuckle.

Carl's mouth is slightly agape in disbelief, "W-what really? But I said I was sorry! And I am! I'm _really_ sorry. So you're supposed to forgive me because that's how this works!"

My eyes flick over to meet his, a slight smirk on my face. My eyebrows rise in amusement, "Is it now?"

He crosses his arms and he wears a sour expression, "Yes it is."

I can't hold it in anymore, "I'm just kidding, you know. Of course I forgive you, dumb ass." I laugh a little bit at how much he got his boxers in a twist over the situation. But then I stop myself, "I'm sorry too, by the way. I shouldn't have said that about your dad. It's just, with Ma- my mom- I lost her in Atlanta. We were supposed to meet back up, but we never did. And I want to think she's still out there, I do… but I know I have to accept she's probably not. I just didn't want you to get hurt, ya know if he doesn't come back." I meet his eyes, knowing I just told him more than anyone here really knew about me. I grit my teeth hard, trying not to cry.

Carl looks down, "Oh. I'm sorry about your mom." he meets my eyes, his tone becomes much lighter, "You wanna go play by the RV? Sophia is off with her parents and I'm super bored."

I raise my eyebrows, "Is that the real reason you apologized?" I stand up and step out of my tent anyway. When Carl gives me a smirk as a response, I roll my eyes, "Race you!" I shout as I take off for the RV.

"Hey wait up!" he calls after me.

I continue sprinting through camp, darting in between people and tents of various sizes and colors, "Keep up slow poke!" I yell back at him. I tag the RV first and turn around to flaunt my victory to Carl, "Ha! I'm the winner!" I stick my tongue out at him.

"No fair!" he stops a couple steps in front of me. His hands go to his knees as he catches his breath, "you got a head start!"

"You're just upset because you're slow," I tease him.

He rolls his eyes and practically flops to the ground with his legs crossed.

Sitting down across from him, I flash him an expectant look, "Now what?"

Carl's already gathering twigs from around him, I copy his movement in response. Once we have a sizeable pile of twigs in front of us, Carl takes a select few and begins to build what looks like a hut. Slightly amused, I help him.

Neither of us says anything for a bit, we just work on our hut in comfortable silence.

"Carl and Ellie," my eyes dart up from my work and Carl whirls around in surprise. We find Sophia poking her upper half around the RV as she continues to chant, "sitting in a tree K-I-S-S-I-N-G!" Carl and I look at each other, embarrassed, before both of our heads bow at the same time. Our cheeks bright red, we're unable look each other in the eye.

Carl jumps up and chases after Sophia who lets out a squeal before taking off in the opposite direction.

I roll my eyes and go back to working on the twig hut. After I deem it complete, I start on a neighbor for the small hut.

Carl comes back after some time. I see his sneakers in my peripheral vision and I look up.

"Still at it?" he smiles with just the corners of his mouth.

"You bet." I smile back.

As Carl and I are making small talk, the blare of a car horn grows from the distance. I push myself up to my feet and Carl and I run to the camp entrance. A red sports car, a Dodge Challenger I believe, pulls into camp. Glenn is in the driver's seat. Someone yells to cut the alarm. Jim is the one who finally does it.

A moving-type van pulls up not long after Glenn gets out. Well, they made it back I suppose. Piling out from the van are Morales, Andrea, Jacqui and T-Dog. I realize Merle is missing and I sit there waiting for him to come out as well. I look around at the adults who've gathered around, obviously excited for their return. I can't help but wonder if they're wondering where Merle is too. Merle's brother, Daryl is out hunting right now, otherwise I know he'd be thinking it. Merle still has yet to show.

I notice the Morales family happily reuniting. I look at Carl and he's biting hard on his lower lip. His eyes are shiny with tears wanting to pour. My gut cinches and I reach over to comfort him. Before I can say anything, Lori pulls Carl away and she kneels down so she can talk to him.

I watch as Carl's face scrunches up more and more, clearly upset. I want to go to him and comfort him. I start in his direction, but a hand rests on my shoulder, stopping me. I turn around and look up to see Joel.

"You gotta let them be. It's their family's business," he tells me.

"But he's upset." I point towards Carl, my eyes wide and upset, but also angry at the same time.

Joel nods, understanding, "You can talk to him later. Let him be with his mom right now."

Just then Glenn shouts something about a new guy being the reason they made it back to camp safely. Joel looks in the direction of the camp entrance, but my eyes are locked on Carl. He turns around and his whole demeanor shifts. His face lights up and he take off in the direction of the camp entrance, "Dad!" he shouts with pure joy. I turn around and watch Carl launch himself into the arms of a man I've never seen before.

The man hugs Carl back, nearly falling to the ground as he embraces his son. The man picks Carl up and he walks over to Lori, who looks as though she's seen a ghost. They hug too. Their family is whole again. I can't help but crack a smile for Carl. He was right. His family is whole again.

Seeing Carl's family reunite makes me believe for the first time in a long time that things might be looking up.


	4. Chapter 2

So, back with another chapter, then. The last few weeks have been extremely difficult for me, but I am getting by just fine.

Fair warning, there is a lot of timeskips in this chapter, so just be warned

Shortly after arriving at the quarry

I still can't believe that all this is even happening. Again, I like killing zombies on Call of Duty, but I never imagined something like this could happen in real life. In fact, I used to laugh at the thought of it. Yet, it's happening right now.

We have a few people in our group, but I'm more interested in spending time with Sophia than anything else. I do think that Daryl and Merle are scary though. Same with Sophia's dad. Dad calls people like that 'rednecks' (I still have no idea what that means).

I notice Ellie sitting beside the RV, alone. Sophia's off with her mother, and Mom's with them too, so I have no-one to talk to. I head over to her, hoping I can get her to talk. As I approach her, I notice that she's reading a comic book. Hmm, perhaps she's not all bad. I mean, I'd always get into trouble at school for reading comic books when the teachers didn't want me to.

"Hi, Ellie. How are you?" I ask. She just looks at me blankly. "What are you reading?" I ask again. Just another blank stare. I snatch the comic out of her hands to look at it myself. "Savage Starlight? Seriously? This is what you read?"

"What about it?" She asks. Okay, she's talking Carl; don't screw it up now.

"It's just that this is the worst comic I ever read. I nearly puked when I first read it." I say, getting a bit of a kick out of this.

"Well, what do you read?" She asks.

"The Avengers." I say proudly. We both go silent for a few moments before Ellie bursts out laughing.

"Seriously? You say I read the worst comic around? You read the Avengers!" She says, still laughing.

"Hey! Captain America's better than Daniela Star!" I reply, defending my favourite superhero.

"No he's not! Doctor Daniela Star's much better. She's an ordinary human for one thing, that makes her more relatable!"

"Black Widow's an ordinary human!" I say back. We start shouting over the top of each other, before going silent again. Then we both burst out laughing. It's a nice moment, and it's good to see that Ellie's not completely lifeless yet. We stop laughing and smile at each other. She might not be there yet, but I still think I can fix her.

"Maybe we should start again. Hi, I'm Carl." I say, holding my hand out.

"Hi Carl. I'm Ellie." She responds, shaking my hand. I totally won our argument though.

"So Ellie, what was your life like before all . . . this?" I ask gently.

"Not much to say. I was just an average 13-year-old girl. You?" She asks.

"My dad was a cop. He stopped bad guys from hurting people. He didn't really talk about it much though; I don't think he liked to. My mom was a childcare worker. She loved working with kids. If I'm honest though, I think I miss Todd the most. He was my best friend in school." I rambled. Ellie stayed silent. "My dad's out there somewhere. He'll find us, I know he will." I say. Elllie doesn't say anything, but the look on her face is enough. She doesn't think dad will return. But I know he will. He'll find us.

(Line break)

Several days later

Not a lot has happened for some time. Ellie and I got into an argument over whether my dad is alive or not a few hours ago. I know her mom died, but that doesn't mean my dad's dead. I mean, he's a police officer. If anyone can survive out there on their own, it's him.

As of right now me and Ellie have just finished building our mini-twig huts in the dirt near the RV. We're just sort of making small talk at the moment; mainly how just a few weeks ago, a zombie apocalypse seemed like the least plausible thing on Earth. Yet, here we are, suriving in the middle of one.

"I actually used to play Zombies on Call of Duty, actually." Ellie says. Now that gets my attention. I didn't know girls played those sorts of games. Heck, I didn't know they played them at all.

"You played Call of Duty?" I ask.

"Yeah. Videogames aren't just for boys, you know." She replies, unimpressed at my attitude.

"You know, I can do a decent impersonation of Sergeant Woods." I say, a little bit of pride creeping in to my voice. Ellie giggles slightly.

"Well, let's hear it then." She says. I recite one of the lines from the game, and Ellie cracks up.

"It wasn't that bad!" I shout indignantly. This just makes her laugh even more.

"What's Call of Duty?" Sophia asks. Man, it's creepy she can sneak up like that on people. She'd make a good spy. She'd be good at a lot of things, I bet. Maybe if this hadn't happened, we'd have met some other time and become best friends.

"You don't know what Call of Duty is?" Ellie asks, interrupting my train of thought. Sophia shakes her head. Ellie begins to launch into a rant about how it's the best game ever and so on

"Carl, time to get a haircut!" My mom shouts. Ugh, I hate having her haircuts. THey make me look even nerdier than I do now.

"Do I have to, Mom?" I groan.

"Yes, you do." She responds. I groan again and start heading over.

"Oh this I gotta see." Says Ellie, grabbing one of her comics and following me.

"It's just me getting a haircut."

"Yeah, but it's you getting a haircut from your mother. It'll be priceless!" Ellie says. We head over and mom sints me down and begins cutting my hair. As I sit there grumbling, Ellie is laughing so hard i swear she's about to start crying. I'm not happy about it, but at least it's good to see her enjoying things once again.

After finishing my haircut (and an interesting discussion about frog legs with Shane) mom sends me on my way

(line break)

Ellie and I are just sitting making small talk by the RV right now. Nothing in particular; just random things. Suddenly, we hear the sound of a car alarm. What the heck is happening?

Our question is resolved when Glenn gets out of a bright red car that looks really cool, but we realise it's the same car that has the alarm going. Jim finally cuts the alarm, before Joel starts giving Glenn an earful. I don't notice though; the Morales family is happily reuniting. It just makes me think of dad, though.

Where are you, dad?

Are you even looking for us?

I can feel tears beginning to come one, but mom pulls me aside.

"Honey, you remember how dad was shot before all this?" She asks. Of course I remember that. How could I forget?

"Yes." I reply weakly.

"Well, baby, I don't . . . Shane and I don't think he'll be coming back." She says. What?

"What do you mean, Mom?" I can feel myself beginning to cry.

"Sweetie, dad is . . . he's dead, sweetie." She answers. I begin full-on bawling at that point. I launch myself into Mom's arms, half-begging myself to wake up from this nightmare. I can barely hear Glenn mention something about a new guy. Mom and I turn towards the camp entrance.

There he is!

"DAD!" I shout, running over and hugging him. It feels like the world just got brighter.

"Carl!" He calls back, hugging me and Mom. I can see out the corner of my eye Ellie smiling at us.

(line break)

"Disoriented." Dad says. We're around the campfire now, seeing that it's dark. Dad's busy describing everything he went through to get back to Mom and I. "Fear, confusion, all those things . . . but disoriented comes closest." He says. I still haven't figured out what that word means.

"Words can be meagre things." Dale says. "Sometimes they fall short."

"Mom said you died." I say. I can see Ellie look at me with concern when I say that. She's obviously worried about how this whole thing with Dad missing and then finding us had messed with my head.

"She had every reason to believe that. Don't you ever doubt it" He responds. I sort of tune out after that. I can hear them talking about Atlanta and the hospital dad was in. I hear Sophia's dad put another log on the fire he has going with Sophia and her mom.

I really want to go and sit with Sophia; but Mom and Shane told me not to. Maybe it has something to do with her dad; I don't know. I just really want to spend time with her. She is my best friend after all. Well, Ellie is a friend too, but I'm not as close to her as I am to Sophia. Seriously, it feels like Sophia and I have known each other forever; when it's only been a few weeks.

Later, as I'm heading towards my tent, Ellie grabs my shoulders, scaring the heck out of me.

"AH! Ellie! Don't do that!" I whisper-shout.

"But it's fun!" She whispers back. We just sorta stare silently at one another for a moment before she pipes up again. "I'm sorry for what I said about your dad . . . I really am." She says quietly.

"I'm sorry for getting mad at you." I reply.

"I just wanted . . . I wanted to say thanks for being my friend. You're a great friend Carl." She says. It took me by shock a little. Ellie's not exactly one for being quiet and sincere.

"You've been a good friend too, Ellie." I reply. Then out of the blue, she hugs me. I'm not sure what to do, but I hug back anyway. We break apart eventually and head to our tents.

"Besides, you'll make Sophia happy one day!" She calls back. I can feel my face go bright red

In the morning, the three of us decide to explore around the edge of the camp. Ellie thought of it first. I'm still a bit nervous being this far from Mom and Dad. I know Sophia's nervous about being away from her mom; she's clutching her doll even tighter than usual.

"You two alright?" Ellie asks.

"Just nervous." Sophia says.

'Well, don't be. We can easily run back if we need to." I nod at her statement, still a little skeptical.

Our exploring is interrupted by a slopping sound. Ellie gestures for us to go and investigate it. As we move through the bushes, I feel Sophia grab my hand. We eventually find one of those Walker things eating a deer. Sophia lets out a small gasp, and the Walker notices us and begins stumbling towards us. So we do the only thing we can think to do: run. We sprint all the way back to the camp, with Sophia and I running to our moms while Ellie is calling out for Joel. We explain that we saw the Walker eating the deer and Dad leads some people off to kill it. Sophia, still in shock, clutches her doll tightly as she hugs her mom.

Soon enough, Dad and the others return, this time with Daryl Dixon. Our moms herd us into a tent; maybe so they can shield us from the confrontations that's about to happen. We can hear shouting going on outside, but can't really make anything out; we're a decent distance from where the confrontation is happening. Sophia's just sorta playing with her doll while Ellie is wringing her hands nervously. Weird; I never took her for that kind of person.

Then again, I've learnt a lot about Ellie in the last few days.

When we're called out from the tent, we learn that Dad's going back into the city. Apparently he left Merle handcuffed to a roof. Glenn, T-Dog and Daryl seem to be going with him. I can see Joel wants to as well.

"C'mon, let me go with you. I'm a good shot and you know it." He says to Dad.

"Joel, I got no reason to doubt you." Dad responds. "But other than Shane, Andrea and Dale, you have the only other gun. I need you here. So does that girl."

"Ellie. Her name's Ellie."

"Ellie. Right. Well she needs you here. And if we're being perfectly honest, I know Lori and Carl would feel a lot safer with another gun here." Dad explains. Joel sighs, but accepts his explanation. "Besides, it seems like what we really need around here are more guns."

Now that gets everyone's attention.

"Right. The guns" Glenn says. I'm a little confused now; where would he find these guns? The police station where he worked?

"Wait, what guns?" Shane asks. Joel looks at Dad, waiting for an answer.

"Six shotguns, two high-powered rifles and over a dozen handguns. I cleaned out the cage at the station before I left. I dropped the bag in Atlanta when I got swarmed. It's just sitting there, waiting to be picked up." Dad explains. Okay, it seems like this whole rescuing Merle deal just got better. Still, what if he gets killed this time? He just got back here and now he wants to go again?

"You went through Hell to find us. You just got here and now you're going to turn around and leave?" Mom asks.

"Dad, I don't want you to go." I say, afraid for him.

Mom and Dad continue their back and forth, until Dad mentions that he owes a man and his son. Why? Did they get him out of the hospital? Did they look after him?

"I left the radio in the bag." Dad explains.

"So use the CB; what's wrong with that?" Andrea asks.

"CB's fine; it's the walkies that are the problem. They date back to the 70s, don't match any other bandwidth; not even the radios in our cars." Shane says. So that's why Dad needs the bag other than the guns. He doesn't want this man and his son to walk into the nightmare that is Atlanta at the moment.

"I need that bag, okay?" He asks me and Mom. Mom nods in understanding and so do I. I really don't want him to go, but he wants to go. Besides, he does have a point on the guns; we do need those.

I head back to my tent afterwards; I just want to be alone to come to terms with the fact that Dad's going back into the city again. I think he'll be okay though; despite what he's been through, he's been okay. I'm confident he can come out okay again.

"Hey." Mom says, entering the tent. "You know, I bet they'll be just fine." She says.

"I'm not worried. Are you?" I respond.

"A little."

"Don't be. Everything that's happened to him so far . . . nothing's killed him yet." I say. Mom laughs a little at that.

"Hey Carl!" I hear Ellie shout. "Shane's gonna teach us how to catch frogs! You still up for it?!"

"Heck yeah! I'm coming!" I shout back. I head down to the quarry and start trying to catch frogs. I can't get anything though; honestly, I'm a little hopeless. I was never really a sporty kid in school; I was more into videogames and comics than sport. That fact's really coming back to bite me now.

I look over to Ellie, and she doesn't seem to be having much luck either. Ellie's slightly fitter than I am, but not by much.

"I can't get any." I groan in in frustration.

"Less whining, more catching." Says Ellie. She then dives towards something, only to end up hitting nothing but water. She sticks her head up, before spitting out some water. "Yuck. Some of it got in my mouth." She says. Shane and I laugh.

"Yeah, crafty little guys; staying submerged. We'll have to do this the old fashioned way. I'll go after one of them; that'll scatter the rest of'em. You two ready?" He asks. We both nod. Shane then starts splashing the water at the two of us, encouraging us to go after the frogs. We try, but still can't seem to get any.

"God, we're fucking useless at this!" Ellie laughs. Shane looks at her in surprise. "Sorry." She says.

"Carl, what'd I tell you about not leaving Dale's sight?" I hear Mom ask. I look over and see her coming down to the quarry towards us. Joel's with her.

"Ellie, I told you the same." He scolds, looking at her pointedly. Ellie looks straight down, downcast slightly.

"But Shane said we could catch frogs, remember?" I say.

"I doesn't matter what Shane says; it matters what I say. Now get back up to the RV. I'll be right behind you." She says. I look down, avoiding eye contact with her

"You too, Ellie. Go on." Says Joel. The two of us trudge up to the RV. We find Sophia inside reading a book. Not sure what it is, but I still prefer comics.

"Hey guys. Ellie, how come your hair's wet?" She asks.

"Long story." Ellie responds. Sophia shrugs and goes back to reading her book. Ellie takes out one of her Savage Starlight comics before settling down to read through it. I shrug and find one of my Avengers comics stashed away. Dale was kind enough to let me keep one in here for when I had nothing else to do. He's a nice man, Dale. Kind of like a fun grandpa.

As the three of us settle down for some reading, I realise that this setting is actually pretty peaceful. I mean, who knows? The three of us might have met in college one day.

Of course, the world's changed a bit. Namely, the flesh-eating monsters that are everywhere. Still, I believe things will get back to normal soon.

They have to, right?


	5. A moment of your time please

This is probably not the update you were hoping for, however...

To everyone that expressed worry about kornerbrandon:

I appreciate your concern about kornerbrandon, and I'm sure he appreciates it too, however he is not my friend and please give me the opportunity to give my side of the story. Whether or not you believe me is your choice, but your beloved author is not all that he seems. I have decided that I have remained silent on this issue for long enough.

Initially, kornerbrandon and I were coauthors, but he was always pushing for more than that even though I strictly wanted to write with him as he seemed to be a decent author. He soon constructed many elaborate lies to try and make me feel bad for him. When my life became too busy to write frequently, he soon became gradually impatient and was constantly harassing me and soon got to the point of threatening me and I began to feel endangered. When I told him if he didn't leave me alone I would report him to fanfiction, he claimed that he was a female friend of his and that he was going to the hospital for a heart attack, seemingly out of nowhere. This "friend" continued to insult and threaten me and finally I had enough and stopped responding. He made a "recovery" in less than a day and was soon bothering me to respond to him. Not long afterward he threatened to kill himself to me and then to you, his readers. It is not fair that he brought you into this over such a petty issue as being unable to update a story, and for that I deeply apologize. As you are no doubt aware by now, kornerbrandon is fine.

Thank you for taking the time out of your day to read this.

For those of you wondering where the story goes from here, I will (in time) write another chapter for Ellie, and if the demand calls for it I can write from the perspective of Carl to continue the story on. However, from this point forward I will not be in contact with kornerbrandon any longer.


End file.
